Log-bundling apparatus and method

ABSTRACT

A PLURALITY OF RELATIVELY SMALL INTERMEDIATE LOGS ARE CONNECTED TO AND HELD BETWEEN TWO RELATIVELY LARGE SIDE LOGS IN SIDE-BY-SIDE RELATIONSHIP BY FLEXIBLE TIES THREADED THROUGH THE LOGS TO FORM A FLOATING BUOYANT BED. BUNDLING BANDS AND A PARBUCKLE LINE ARE LAID OVER SUCH BED TRANSVERSELY OF THE LENGTH OF THE LOGS. A STACK OF LOGS PLACED ON SUCH BED WILL CAUSE IT TO SAG FOR EMBRACING THE LOGS OF THE STACK TO FORM THEM AUTOMATICALLY INTO BUNDLE RELATIONSHIP. THE BANDS ARE THEN SECURED AROUND THE BUNDLE AND THE PARBUCKLE IS PULLED TO ROLL THE BUNDLE OUT OF THE CRADLE FORMED BY THE SAGGING BED.

Jan. 12, 1971 K. E. ROBERTS ET AL 3,553,752

LOG-BUNDLINCT APPARATUS AND METHOD 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 12, 1968Jan. 12, 1971 A ROBERTS ET AL 3,553,752

LOG-BUNDLING APPARATUS AND METHOD Filed Aug. 12, 1968 2 Sheets-Shet 2INVENTORS. AZV IV M Ffilff/Q/j BY fl/V/VETZ/ E. 19956 375 Wm M 3,553,752LOG-BUNDLING APPARATUS AND METHOD Kenneth E. Roberts and Alvin M.Roberts, both of 705 W. McBryde, Montesano, Wash. 98563 Filed Aug. 12,1968, Ser. No. 751,954 Int. Cl. B63b 35/58 US. Cl. 915 3 Claims ABSTRACTOF THE DISCLOSURE A plurality of relatively small intermediate logs areconnected to and held between two relatively large side logs inside-by-side relationship by flexible ties threaded through the logs toform a floating buoyant bed. Bundling bands and a parbuckle line arelaid over such bed transversely of the length of the logs. A stack oflogs placed on such bed will cause it to sag for embracing the logs ofthe stack to form them automatically into bundle relationship. The bandsare then secured around the bundle and the parbuckle is pulled to rollthe bundle out of the cradle formed by the sagging bed.

For shipment overseas logs are loaded into the holds of ships. Tofacilitate loading and unloading of logs into ships holds, it iscustomary for a crane to handle them in bundles. Such bundles can beformed at the time the crane is ready to lift the logs by extending asling around several logs which will gather them together as the liftingforce is applied to the sling. When such a bundle of logs is depositedin the hold of a ship and the lifting force is removed from sling, thelogs of such a temporary bundle would roll relative to each other sothat the logs would tend to spread out into a row in the ships hold. Tounload the logs it would then be necessary to extend a sling aroundseveral logs in the ships hold again so that a temporary bundle could bereformed by application of a lifting force to the sling.

It has been found that logs can be loaded into and un loaded from thehold of a ship much more conveniently if several logs are formed into apermanent bundle which can be lifted by a crane without dependence onthe lifting force provided by the crane to form the bundle. When such abundle of logs is deposited in a ships hold, the logs will remain inbundle relationship. When it is desired to remove the logs from theships hold, it is not necessary to reform the bundle because such bundlewill remain intact so that it need merely be hoisted out of the hold.The present invention is concerned with facilitating the formation ofsuch a permanent bundle of logs for overseas shipment.

It is a principal object of the present invention to stack several logsso that they will be arranged automatically in bundle relationship tofacilitate securing them in such relationship. More specifically, it isan object to utilize the buoyancy of the logs and of apparatusassociated with the logs to effect such automatic bundle-formingoperation.

Another object is to provide apparatus utilized in such I bundle-formingoperation which is easy and economical to construct and which can beconstructed in any desired size, depending upon the size of bundle oflogs which it is desired to form.

It is also an object to arrange several logs in a bundle relationshipsuch that they can be secured readily in such relationship, and, after apermanent bundle has thus been formed, it can be removed quickly andeasily from the apparatus utilized in forming it to prepare suchapparatus for use in forming the next log bundle.

FIG. 1 is a top perspective of log-bundling apparatus United StatesPatent "ice according to the present invention in condition forinitiation of a bundle-forming operation.

FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 are end elevations of log-bundleforming apparatusshown in different stages of a bundleforming operation.

In order to utilize the buoyance of logs to assist in forming a logbundle, the apparatus employed for the bundle-forming operation floatsin water. Such water may be a lake, an artificial log pond, a stream orsalt water. Access to the log-bundling apparatus is provided from afloat 1 which may be a log float or could be a dock. The bundlingapparatus may be secured to a mooring log 2 which is tied to the floator dock 1 by chains 3.

The log-bundling apparatus includes a floating buoyant bed formed ofrelatively large side logs 4 and 5 and relatively small intermediatelogs 6 arranged between such side logs in substantially parallelside-by-side relationship. The side logs and intermediate logs are heldin such relationship with a reasonable amount of play between them by atleast two flexible ties 7 spaced length-wise of the logs. Preferablythese ties extend through apertures bored substantially diametricallythrough the logs and such ties may be lengths of cable. The floating bedformed by the logs 4, 5, and 6 can be connected to the mooring log 2 bychains 8 at opposite ends of the bed.

In order to remove a completed log bundle from the bundling apparatus, aparbuckle including cables 9 and a connecting chain 10 is provided. Theends 11 of the cables are secured to the side log 5, remote from themooring log 8, and the lines 9 of the parbuckle, which can be cable, arelaid across the intermediate logs 6 and the other side log 4 as shown inFllGS. l and 2. The chain 10 connecting the parbuckle lines 9 and theadjacent portions of such lines can be laid on. the mooring log 2. p

In preparation for making up a bundle of logs tying straps 12 can belaid across the floating bed. Such straps should be of a lengthsufficient to encircle the logs 13 of a bundle and the end of suchstraps can be secured together by a clam 14 shown in FIG. 4.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the log-bundling apparatus is prepared forreception of logs to be bundled. One or more logs 13 are laid onto thelog-bundling bed by a crane until a sufficient number of logs to formthe bundle have been thus placed. As the logs are laid on the centralportion of the bed between the side logs 4 and 5, as shown in FIG. 3,the weight of the logs will cause the bed to sag. At least the centralintermediate logs 6 will be fully submerged by the weight of the logs 13to be bundled and perhaps all of such intermediate logs will besubmerged completely. The flexible ties 7 will be deflected intodownwardly bent shape and the side logs 4 and 5 will be rolled from thepositions of FIG. 2 to positions such as shown in FIG. 3, in which thebores through which the tie members 7 extend are inclined downwardly andinwardly toward the intermediate logs 6. Such deflection of the ties 7will draw the side logs toward each other so that the sagging bed willcradle the stack of logs to be bundled, such as in the relationshipshown in FIG. 3.

During such operation of loading the floating bed with logs to bebundled, the added buoyancy of the submerged intermediate logs 6, thegreater buoyancy provided by perhaps forcing the side logs 4 and 5downward to a somewhat greater extent than when they are floating freelyand the buoyancy aflorded by the portions of the stacked logs beneaththe surface of the water will balance the weight of the logs and logportions 13 in the stack above the water level. Because of the concaveshape assumed by the depressed floating bed when loaded with a stack oflogs and the drawing together of the side logs 4 and 5, the stacked logs13 will form a bundle of generally cylindrical shape as shown in FIG. 3.The straps 12 can then be pulled around the logs thus assembled andtensioned to bind the logs permanently in such a bundle. The overlappingends of the tensioned bands 12 can then be secured in such overlappingrelationship by conventional strapping clamps 14.

Logs can be assembled into bundles in this fashion to be loaded laterinto a ships hold. When each bundle has been completed, therefore, itcan be removed from the log-bundling apparatus and stored in floatingcondition. The easiest way to remove the completed log bundle from thefloating bed is to use the parbuckle 9, 10. In FIG. 5 a crane hook 15has been engaged with the chain 10 connecting the parbuckle lines 9 andhoisted so that the log bundle is rolled toward the side log 5 to whichthe ends 11 of the parbuckle lines are secured. As the bundle of logs isthus rolled onto the side log 5 as shown in FIG. 5, the weight of suchlog bundle will depress the side log so that the bundle can be rolledmore easily over it. In such operation it is not necessary for theparbuckle to support the entire weight of the log bundle because atleast a portion of the bundled logs will be below the surface of theWater as shown in FIG. 5. As soon as the parbuckle has rolled the bundleof logs beyond the side log 5, such bundle will float freely and theside log 5 and adjacent intermediate logs 6 will rise to the surface.The parbuckle may then be lowered and the lines 9 again laid across thefloating bed as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 preparatory to the formation ofanother log bundle.

FIG. 6 illustrates an alternative procedure for removing a completed 10gbundle from the floating bed. In this instance a sling or hoisting line16 is extended around the log bundle and a hook 17 is caught around thebight 18 of the hoisting line. By pulling the line 18 upwardly thebundle of logs is lifted bodily out of the sagging floating bed so thatsuch bundle can either be deposited directly in the hold of a ship orcan be loaded onto some other vehicle, such as a truck or railway car,or could be swung and lowered into dry storage or could simply be movedover the side of the floating bed and released to be held in floatingstorage.

We claim:

1. Log-bundling apparatus comprising a floating bed including, inside-by-side relationship, opposite side logs and a plurality ofintermediate logs between said side logs, flexible ties connecting saidlogs and holding them in such side-by-side relationship of a lengthsuflicient to enable sagging of said floating bed under the weight of astack of logs placed thereon to cradle such logs in bundle relationship,and a parbuckle including a line attached to one of said side logs andextending across said intermediate logs to the other side log forrolling a bundle of logs from the sagging bed.

2. The method of bundling logs which comprises flexibly connectingopposite side logs and a plurality of intermediate logs in side-by-siderelationship and thereby forming a floating bed, placing a stack of logsto be bundled on the floating bed and thereby eflecting sagging of thefloating bed to cradle the stacked logs automatically in bundlerelationship, binding such stacked logs in such bundle relationship, andparbuckling out of such sagging bed the logs bound in such bundlerelationship.

3. The log-bundling apparatus defined in claim 1, in which each of theintermediate logs has a plurality of bores extending transverselythrough it, spaced lengthwise of it and disposed in registry,respectively, with a plurality of bores in adjacent logs on oppositesides thereof, and the flexible ties extend through such registeringbores in the intermediate logs and are connected to the side logs.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 935,476 9/1909 Elfer 9151,470,064 10/1923 Davis et al. 915 1,488,664 4/1924 Clancy 915 1,631,4036/1927 Davis 9-15 1,824,982 9/1931 Chevalier 9-15 2,045,875 6/1936Rutledge 9-15 2,421,145 5/1947 Gibson 9-15 MILTON BUCHLER, PrimaryExaminer STEVEN W. WEINRIEB, Assistant Examiner

